The Missing Link
by Hyriath
Summary: Captured and trapped in True Ice for a millennium, Gnar breaks out and must adapt to the new yet strange world that he is now forced to live in. As a yordle from prehistoric times, he may be the key to unlock the secrets behind the questions of old.
1. Loss

Revised. Thanks LewiBro. I'll keep that in mind.

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><p><strong>Chapter 1:<strong>

**Loss**

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><p>"Protect your sister and brother at all costs, no matter what happens!"<p>

The little yordle nodded.

"I want you to have this," the older yordle said while unwrapping a bundle of cloth that revealed a weapon resembling a boomerang and was composed of jawbone and leather. "I don't have the time to teach you how to use this now but I have to go outside and help defend the village, do you understand? So please, please protects your siblings and stay safe!" The father of the yordle gave him a small kiss of his furry forehead and started to leave.

Gnar nodded.

I have to. Be strong. For me and your siblings.

"Gnar, I must defend the village and without me, the village will fall," Gnar's father said, staring at the little yordle's sad face.

Gnar started to tearing as his father closed the door to their little hut but he tried to cheer himself up. Right after his dad left, he tried to look for his siblings and found that they were hiding under his bed. His younger brother was trying to comfort their little sister.

"Big brother! Nara's afraid. She doesn't want to come out of your bed so I joined her here. Is that okay, big brother?"

Gnar could not resist but join them as well under his bed as well and told them silly jokes to keep his siblings spirits up. Since their mother had gone away earlier and their father to the small walls made from mud bricks that they had built years ago. Gnar knew the walls were not safe for a little yordle like him but he wasn't afraid. His dad had taught him everything he knew to survive. But right now, that was not what concerned Gnar.

The noises, sounds of creatures unknown and screams and shouts of the yordle villagers, grew louder and louder as each second passed. Gnar told his brother to cover his sister's ears but doing so did not help her. Her fear grew bigger and bigger as did the noises.

Soon, after minutes of inactivity, Gnar told his brother to stay put and he got out under the bed and held to his boomerang as tightly as he could. He wanted to look outside through the window but everything was dark and the same noises still grew. Not knowing what would happen, he dared himself to look outside and he saw fire. Hot, red, and destructive fire had torn the village as if it had never been there at all.

Still looking outside, the door abruptly opened and surprised Gnar. His dad had showed up, his eyes hardened with what he seen.

"Son, go get your siblings, hurry!"

Without any delay, Gnar went back to his bedroom and motioned for them to get up and come with him.

"Big brother, Nara won't come out. You have to help me!" Gnar's brother yelled, panic present in his voice. Gnar looked around to see if anything could convince her sister to get out. He noticed that Nara was without her doll that their mother made for her on her birthday years ago.

He rushed to his sister's room and grabbed the doll, made with various fabrics sown together to look like a bunny. Gnar came back and gave the doll to his sister which made her get out of their hiding place.

Once out of his bedroom, their father took his sister's hand and beckoned the two brother to follow him.

One step outside was all it took.

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><p>Gnar woke up sweating and sobbing. He had dreamt of the same thing over and over since the event had happened. His father came in and gave him a reassuring smile.<p>

"Same dream?"

He nodded.

"You know what? We could practice with the boomerang today so you can forget about the whole thing, yes?"

He nodded again.

Gnar stood up from his bed and clutched at his chest as if he was in pain. Over his chest laid a small but visible scar that ran in the middle of chest. Gnar tried to pay no attention to his healed wound but it still hurt him.

Both of the yordles came out Gnar's bedroom and was surprised with Nara's sleepy eyes while she stood in front of the door, clutching her doll, now missing an ear, very lightly.

"Good morning Nara."

The two year old responded with a soft yawn.

"We're going outside. Do you want to come with us?"

She nodded and grabbed his dad's orange hand.

They arrived at a small clearing just nearby their house and Gnar had brought along with him his boomerang that he had kept in his waist tied to his loincloth every day.

Gnar's father had set up practice target long ago so that the little yordle could practice whenever he wanted. The targets were arranged specifically so that Gnar had to curve his throws and hit the covered target at the sides. Although, Gnar had already mastered throwing his boomerang straight right after the attack, he still couldn't do what his father wants him to do.

Make the boomerang curve while it's flying.

"Gnar, show me how far you have improved after all this months."

Gnar sighed and nodded and threw his boomerang horizontally and the object spun rapidly and headed towards one of the small wooden pole that blocked the target's path.

"Bullseye! Great work, Gnar. You've hit the wooden pole. Now you just have to curve your throw and hit the actual target and you'll be able to beat me in a duel anytime soon."

Gnar was smirked and faked his delight in hearing that from his father, considering that his dad was able to do what could not in his first try or so the other yordles say. If his village wasn't destroyed by those creatures, his instinct, although still child-like, would be a lot sharper and a whole lot better than his dad's but he didn't mind that his dad was better. He was the head of the family after all and he took care of their family.

Gnar clutched his chest in pain one more time before he started walking towards his dad by the targets.

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><p>"NARA, GAR, RUN!" Gnar had shouted the two when the creatures were steadily closing in on them. All his life, he knew danger but this was not the type of danger but that doesn't matter now, he thought, his life was in danger and so was his family and the entire tribe.<p>

His father was standing close to Gnar while throwing razor sharp knives that he had carved from dead animal bones. Gnar did not know what to do other than try to keep his siblings safe. Yelling at them to hurry up, one of the creatures had grabbed on Nara's doll. The little yordle tried yanking it from the creature but it persisted its pull. Dar told his sister to let go and that they could get another one. Nara shook her head and tugged at the doll harder which caused the doll to rip its ear off.

Once the ear was torn apart from the doll, Dar carried his sister and ran as fast as he could with her on his back. He almost had a close call there, he thought to himself. When he reached Gnar, he gave Nara to him and it was his turn to carry her.

"Dad, where's mom?" Dar asked worriedly.

"She's with grandmas helping people to get out here. Don't worry about her. I know she's strong and she can handle herself."

Gnar, on the other hand, was filled with rage and anger as the creatures that had attacked their once peaceful village but now torn apart with their viciousness and ferocity. At first it seemed that they were all doomed and that their lives would now be over just because the creatures attacked. Gnar blamed it on them. The creatures.

ANGER.

RAGE!

GNAR!

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><p>Dar and father saw Gnar groaning from pain and his eyes were a bright red color and so was his orange fur that now turned to a dark shade of red. Other than that, his normal yordle height changed as well as his body structure. In an instant, from the small yordle, he became a massive monster who did nothing but take pleasure in destruction but it still felt like Gnar was there with the monster shouting his name every few seconds.<p>

The monster that Gnar became wasted no time in heading towards the creatures. He immediately chucked and lobbed large boulders that he would literally grab from the ground. After a few minutes of fighting, it seemed that his brute force was relentless but he looked like he was "playing" with the creatures just somewhat roughly.

"Dad, please stop him!" Nara cried.

Her father looked down to her and said nothing. Though, he motioned for his children to come before Gnar might accidentally hurt them

Once out of Gnar's sight, the three hid in another hut but this time, their father stayed since he could no longer do anything for the village. For once, he had lost faith that he would actually be able to save the village after his years saving it form monsters and other yordles alike.

Nara cried once more and gave her little doll and tight hug as he asked his dad to bring Gnar back to them. Dar begged the same. Their father only shook his head to tell them that he can't.

Gnar and his father always knew that he could transform whenever he felt rage and anger. No one in his tribe could do so. It was just Gnar. No one else knew until now. Villagers of their tribe would probably think of him as a monster, but that didn't matter now, their father thought, he just can't save him until he transformed back to normal. But when would he transform back? And where?

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><p>Gnar smiled deeply at his sister as she held his hand more firmly. She returned the gesture and both of them walked towards the entrance of the village healer's house. It took them a few days to reach the place so they would only visit once every two weeks.<p>

Inside, Gnar saw a variety of plants and containers and to him, it smelled like someone had taken some manure and just dumped it there. He saw his sister smelled it as well from the looked very disgruntled. He merely laughed it off and said ew.

As they headed further in the large hut, he saw a lot of sick yordles and some had weird white lumps over their skins. Gross, Gnar thought, laughing hysterically at their funny looks. Gnar passed by a lot of sick people before reaching a certain bed. He looked at its occupant and there laid a female yordle way older than his father.

"Hey grandma," was all Gnar could mutter. His sister approached her and gave her a wide hug which she accepted and returned.

"Gnar, my dear. I am so happy to see you! It's been so long since I've seen you and your sister. I bet you probably miss them, huh?"

Gnar nodded and gave her a big smile.

"How are you doing, my dear?" she asked.

"I'm fine, grandma. I need to get some fresh air. This place smells really bad," he replied annoyingly. Gnar left his grandmother, who laughing silently at him, and passed by his father who gave him a grin. But soon returned his gaze back to his mother.

Gnar sat down by the entrance and told himself that he won't even return to that place any more. Gnar just hated the smell, although it was funny. Reminds him of the attack though. But then, he tried to forget about the past.

Gnar just sat down a simple wooden stool and started drawing pictures of his family on the dirt. He drew Nara, his dad, his mom, Dar, himself holding his trusty boomerang. While in the process of drawing Dar, he heard footsteps getting closer to him. He looked up and suddenly, he was shocked to see his brother. Happiness went over him and ran towards him.

"Gnar! I haven't seen in you in forever!"

"Dar!" Gnar stood up and ran to give his brother a big embrace. The two brother has not seen each other in three months. "Where's mom? I miss her so much!"

Dar chuckled and pointed his finger behind him. There stood a younger yordle about the age of his dad. Gnar almost looked like her mother but she has a bowtie on her right ear which distinguished her from most of the yordles back then when they had a tribe.

"MOM!"

Right after Gnar yelled in delight, Nara and their father came out of the large hut. Smiles grew on everyone's faces as they went to hug each other in joy of seeing everyone complete once more.

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><p>Gnar woke up in the middle of the ravaged hut. His chest had a searing pain and he wanted to cry but he could not bear himself to do so. Additionally, he didn't know where he was. He only saw his boomerang by his hand and he laid in the middle of a torn up house. That did not help distinguish where he was at all. At first, he wanted to cry but he remembered what his father said: "Be strong." And he planned in doing so.<p>

He stood up and dusted his fur and looked on his surroundings. Pretty much devastated. There ought to be something, he thought. He kept looking but there was nothing. His mind muddled with all that was happening. First, he was missing, second, his family was nowhere to be found. But it changed in an instant.

"Gnar! Help me get grandma. She was hit by one the creatures in the leg. It's pretty bad."

"Mom?"

Gnar turned around and saw his mother carrying his grandmother on her back. He then rushed to his side and took the weight off of her mom.

"Thank goodness you're safe, son. But where's your dad and your siblings?" she asked frantically.

"I don't know mom," tears formed in his eye, "The last thing I remember was Dar carrying Nara to me and everything just went black. I really don't know where they are! I don't kno-"

"It's okay. It's okay," she said, trying to comfort his son, "Now, you have to be strong for me and your grandma, okay?"

Gnar nodded in response.

"Good," now calming down, she motioned his son to come over and lay his grandmother over the blackened table. "Go find something that we can cover her leg."

Gnar wordlessly agreed and searched the destroyed house in search for any cloth that he could find. To his dismay, he found nothing. Nothing was left of the house except for a big hole that peeked into the whole hut. In his dismay, his desperation to have something right forced him to go outside where peace was vanquished by death everywhere.

As Gnar stepped out of the hut, the first thing he saw was a large paw print which resembled the paws of the little yordle but was ten time bigger than Gnar's. He then looked at his own feet and only saw the dirt that had lodged itself between the creases of his paw. Gnar saw more of the paw print that ran along a straight path that seemed to originate somewhere the nearby forests. He suddenly realized that he just transformed into the monster and somehow ended up in the hut.

The little yordle moved further away from the hut and Gnar moved through area as he searched house by house but to no luck, he wasn't able to find anything but a container of water that was still somehow intact amidst the chaos. Grandma could use it, he thought to himself.

While walking around, double checking if he had left anything, he encountered a small voidling. Gnar's whole body froze as terror took over his body. The small voidling saw this and stomped at the ground with its four legs roughly, creating a small cloud of dust that blew away faster than the purple creature could make. Gnar still in place, the creature started to walk towards him ominously and a smile formed in its lips. When the voidling was about two yards away from the little yordle, he heard a faint whoosh from his side and just saw the voidling get hit by something.

Gnar snapped out of it and adrenaline took over as he grabbed his boomerang and stabbed the voidling in its back with the sharp end of the weapon and the voidling squealed in pain as it died through the blow that Gnar had dealt. At the same time, the creature had shot a ball of energy that directly hit Gnar's chest and he clutched his chest as searing pain took over.

"Are you alright?" a voice behind Gnar made him turn around, "Are you alright?"

Gnar shakily nodded in response.

"Did it hurt you?"

Gnar shook his head and he knew he had lied.

"Good, now we have get you out of here."

Shaking his head to get rid of his dizziness he said, "I-I can't. Not yet!" I have to get to my grandma! S-she's hurt and I need to find something to cover her wounds."

"Okay. I have what you need but we have to get out of here after we get your grandmother. It's not very safe here, okay?"

Gnar simply nodded still clutching his chest.

"Lead the way."

Gnar traced his way back to the hut and the yordle behind him followed. Once they reached the hut, Gnar entered and was surprised with a warm hug.

"Oh, Gnar! I shoudn't have sent you outside!" his mom said while trying to contain sobs.

"It's okay mom. I got what we need," he replied silently, "We should be able to get grandma now. The guy behind me says he has it."

The yordle gave Gnar's mom a long strand of cloth and it was probably enough. His mom took his hand and shook it really and she expressed her thanks multiple times before she had let go. His mom then went to his grandma's side and wrapped her leg with the cloth. After her mother had bandaged her, Gnar gave her a drink from the container he found earlier.

"Good idea, Gnar," his mom said proudly but tears still trickled down her face.

"We got to go."

Gnar took his grandmother and carried her on his back. His mother prepared her weapon which strikingly resembled his own. Now that they were ready, they all headed out of the hut.


	2. Hope

Edited: Grammar, Some Vocabulary, and Spelling.

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><p><strong>Chapter 2:<strong>

**Hope**

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><p>"I-I can't leave you here!"<p>

"J-just leave me here!" the yordle shouted, "I'll stall them long enough so you can get away! YOU HAVE TO GO NOW!"

Gnar started to form tears and shook his head and said, "I'm not going to leave ever again! I don't where my dad and siblings are so I'm not going to lose another person! It's all my fault. I never should have wandered off on my own. It's all my fault!"

Gnar's crying did not help at the fact that they had alerted a large void monster and it was heading at their direction. Gnar looked around desperately and tried to see if they was anything that he could use to carry the yordle.

Nothing.

"Just go now!"

Ignoring his requests, he grabbed a hold of one if his arms and started dragging it. It was barely working since the little yordle does not have the strength to carry someone bigger than him. But he tried. He tried as hard as he could.

Moving slowly but surely, the little yordle was able to drag the other yordle in an attempt to get away with the help of the yordle kicking his legs to create some movement but the large void creature was moving three times as fast.

Now feeling the tremor of the void creature's large strides, Gnar started to panic and the yordle kept insisting to leave him behind. Gnar still refused to do so. He still continued to drag the yordle and he found a large bush that they might be able to use to hide from the creature. He put the yordle down and quickly inspected the bush to see if there were any opening that they could hide in. Luckily, there was a small hole near the base of the bush that could probably fit in two small yordles. Returning to where he left the yordle just a couple yards away, he carried him with his help and went inside the hole.

Seconds later, the large creature came nearer as the vibrations as it treaded through the clearing more violently. Lucky for them, the creature just went past the bush and just continued to ram the forest looking for them.

"My name is Nako," the yordle said. Gnar looked at him like he was some sort of weird person. Of all the worst places, he chose to tell Gnar his name also at the wrong time. "I've told you mine, now what's yours?"

"Gnar."

"I like that name. I know this is so sudden and really at the wrong time since there's a large monster hunting us but I guess you were right. I haven't said thanks yet but here. Thanks. Back there though, I thought I was going to die but you never gave up on me so thanks again."

Gnar's frown turned into a small smile as he gave the wounded yordle a small hug and Nako, stunned by his actions and smiled, returned the gesture. Although they still weren't safe, Nako had peeked outside with some trouble as his leg wasn't in a good shape but he still managed to look out. When he was finished he told Gnar that they could go outside but they have to be careful as to not cross paths with the creature that still rammed at everything that went its way. Gnar helped him get up and he let Nako's arms fall over his shoulders as a makeshift crutch. Walking slowly and gently, they were able to get a ton of distance between them and the creature whose violent rambling could still be heard.

Gnar and Nako returned to where they last saw his mom and saw only his grandmother resting on the side of a big boulder. She gave them a quick glance and motioned Gnar with her finger to come to her and sit by her. Gnar sat down and gave her a quick hug. Nako, on the other hand, laid down on top of some leaves making a makeshift bed.

"Your mom is so worried about you, Gnar," his grandma said, "She's looking everywhere for you. But we should stay here until she comes back." Gnar agreed and put his head on her grandma's lap and slept peacefully

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><p>Gnar woke up to the sound of yordles talking and he looked up to see his grandma was still there. Gnar got up and walked around the clearing and saw his mom talking to someone. He walked further to see who she was talking. Gnar was able to get a small hint to who she was talking before he or she left. Like all yordles he has seen, he or she had orange fur just like his fur. But there was something strange about that yordle. He or she, Gnar didn't know, had a large necklace which had an embedded shiny stone that hung around their neck. His mom then turned around and headed to Gnar.<p>

"Good morning little boy. You slept really quietly last night so I didn't wake you up."

Gnar ran up to her and gave her a warm embrace.

"So, what do you want to do today?" she asked, "Do you want to get something to eat or find dad?"

"Eat!"

Gnar instinctively took out his boomerang and waddled everywhere to amuse his mom. They told Nako to look out for their grandma while went to hunt for a while. Once they got to the forest, Gnar imitated his dad, crouching all the time whenever he hunted and Gnar always made fun of it yet it had always worked and it got him his prey. None of their prey would notice when their sneaking about and when they do, they don't even have to chance to get away and the yordle would get something to eat for the day.

Gnar's mom took him to an isolated area where Gnar was taught by his dad on how to hunt when he still a small yordle. Gnar remembered that there was a certain area of the forest that he would never dare enter. When he was small, he made the mistake of entering the small cave. His dad had warned him not to enter the cave because it was far too dangerous for him to enter. Gnar thought that it would be no fun at all if he couldn't experience the thrill of danger but then again, he was still a small child so he entered and he never wished to come back to the cave. Gnar then proceeded to the very edge of the area and waited for anything to pass by. While waiting, he heard a small and constant humming sound that came from his right side. This is it, he said to himself.

Gnar's mom was sharpening her weapon while Gnar scouted ahead to see what kind of game they would have. If it was big, yum! Gnar craved for food as he had not eaten in a day. His stomach rumbled just thinking about it. He went through the bushes without any sound so he wouldn't alarmf any prey and he did what his dad always did. Crouching around, he saw a large brown animal. Suddenly, Gnar gasped as pain ruptured throughout his chest and the animal immediately noticed Gnar's presence and started running opposite of him

"I want that now!" Gnar screamed and sprinted to the animal's general direction. Running blindly through the forest without actually knowing the animal is except where it headed, Gnar started throwing a tantrum and he admitted defeat by thrashing at the ground. He threw his boomerang up in the sky as he continued to scream and shout at his defeat. A couple seconds later, he heard a loud screech and soon his mom just popped out from the bushes around him and told Gnar to help him carry the animal she just killed. Gnar gaped his mouth in awe and stopped his tantrum and rushed to his mother's side.

They carried the animal back to where they had left their grandmother and his mom made sure that nothing was following them. Gnar went ahead and gathered leaves as his mom told him to do so and laid it down by his grandma to keep her warm. Dawn was approaching so his mom took precautions in setting the fire up so that no one would be able to see it. She placed big stones on the sides to serve as seats. She then cut the meat into decently so that everyone in their group would have equal proportions but she cut Gnar's share a bit smaller because of his small tummy. Gnar protested and said that he wanted more but his mom said that he would have a tummy ache like the last he ate way too much. His mom was victorious that time and Gnar somehow forgot about their argument and headed to his grandma and lay next to her with the warmth of the leaves.

As Gnar's mom cooked the meat, the smell made Gnar very hungry and his stomach grumbled even more. "Mom, is that cooked yet?"

"It's almost close, Gnar. Just a bit more turns in this spit and it'll be done in no time." All four cut meat was skewered on a stick wrapped with washed leaves that Gnar's mom always kept whenever she left the house. She turned the spit for a few more turns and it was finally done and they simply ate and went to sleep.

The small group left the following morning to head wherever their paws would lead them. Gnar was still very sleepy so he couldn't do much but complain that it was still too early to wake up. Along the clearing, Nako would see the occasional berries and would pick it up but he would have to keep up the pace to catch up with the group. Gnar's grandmother still rested in his mom's back and Gnar was simply walking woozily while his eyes were still heavy with sleep.

Not being able to do much, Gnar was easily bored so he tried to find something to entertain him other than just walking around the clearing without any real purpose. So Gnar wandered around and tried not to stray too far from his mom and not get lost again. While successfully doing so, Gnar was still not able to have any sort of fun that he would've wanted rather than poking at some bugs that he occasionally found along the way.

Dawn had passed and the group were still walking and Gnar's mom found a small cave that they could use for the night. Once arriving, they ate from the meat that they had brought along with them from the animal they had caught the day before. After eating, Nako extinguished the fire and made sure that no one had seen the fire and went to sleep.

"Mom," Gnar said in his sleepy, "When are we going to see dad?"

* * *

><p>"Dar, make sure your sister is safe. Don't go out. It's not as safe here unlike last time. I need to find something to eat. Don't leave even if someone asks you to come with them, okay? I will come back, I promise."<p>

Dar and Nara stayed in stayed in a small hut that was still intact even after the attack. Although it was relatively safe where they were at the moment, Dar knew the dangers that might be possibly lurking outside so he just kissed Nara on the forehead and they played silly games as quietly as they could. Nara was having fun yet she was still missing her big brother Gnar. Ever since they left Gnar when he transformed which was a two days ago, his other brother was the only yordle that could really comfort her as she was really close to him. Yet she begged for Gnar to come and play with her.

Dar seeing her distressed, he knew that she missed Gnar but so did he. Gnar always protected them but why wasn't he here now, he thought to himself feeling on the verge of crying. Nara was there so he didn't feel that bad.

After a couple minutes of playing and goofing around the hut, Nara forgot that her bunny doll's ear had been ripped apart and luckily, the voidling lost grip of its ear and Dar had grabbed the ear involuntarily so he did not realize he was holding onto it until yesterday. Dar had no sewing skills whatsoever but their mom could just do the trick. Dar had told Nara to wait until their mom came so that she could fix it. Reluctantly, she agreed although she wanted him to fix it now.

Dar had waited for his dad's return while he tried his best not to bore his sister as he was getting bored himself. Unlike the day before, they had a whole place that they could run around and play with their surroundings and he felt like a kid once more because of that. They left the place because a small purple creature had wandered along. Luckily enough, their dad had seen the creature first and they left as quickly as they could and put as much distance as they could from the monsters. Dar had only brought with him his own pet bug that he kept in his small pack on his side. Maybe this'll work, he said to his sister. He showed her the big and was instantaneously amazed at what she saw. He put a small leather piece on the ground and set the bug down onto the piece of leather. Nara wanted to touch it but Dar had briskly put her hand away and told her that the bug would die if someone else held it other than him. So Nara swapped her attention to just watching it. Dar had taught the bug some tricks like go up his finger and fly back to the piece of leather. This just awed the little yordle girl just as when she first saw the bug.

"Brother, why haven't you showed me him before?" Nara asked gently while keeping her appreciative smile.

"Uh… I don't know."

"That's okay. You're my brother so yeah!"

Dar smiled at her and patted her at her forehead which was returned with a small hug. Dar had enjoyed her company more after the initial attack at their village.

An hour passed by, their dad had returned with all sorts of berries and they ate until all the berries their dad had collected was gone within minutes but he had spent two hours gathering them. Satisfied and happy with the food, their dad put both of them to sleep to a makeshift cot that he had raised not too long ago.

* * *

><p>Meh… Got too darned lazy especially with tests upcoming this week.<p>

Update 11/22/14: Tests are done. Recital is done. Studying is done(for now). :)


	3. Remotely Dangerous

**Chapter 3:**

**Remotely Dangerous**

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><p>A month has passed, Nara and his family has settled on flat area with some trees scattered around the place. After the attack, the little yordle, who yearned to see his brother so desperately, finally found him with their mom and grandmother. Gnar looked sad and murmuring about losing someone. Since they had nowhere to go back to, the family was on their own and was isolated with the help of the long mountain ranges that separated them from the icy region where they would occasionally hunt for exotic food—such as the rare and delicious white furred—horned, and ball-shaped animals whose tongue always stuck out—or gather some fresh water from the ice when they ran out of water. Nara's family had built a small hut that would be big enough for the family of five yordles. They have a big space outside all to themselves so Nara's parents did not have to worry about their tiny living space when the little yordles were playing.<p>

Nara had grown accustomed to the serenity of isolation and he had long since forgotten what it was like to have friends around him. Since she did not have friends to play with anymore, she only had her siblings to cheer herself with games that they would play in the wide open space that they had.

Gnar and Nara were the only yordles that could be seen for miles as their brother had asked to come with their mom to go back to their old and destroyed village to search for herbs and wildlife to cure their grandmother's wound that had still persisted even after the attack. With her efforts, she had at least helped one-fourth of the survivors of the attack in some way, such as relieving major pain or fix some broken bones through her remedies. Unfortunately for Gnar, his father was not able to round up any young yordles during his search for survivors with a few able-bodied yordles.

While playing along the fields, Gnar's dad had left him in charge of watching over his sister. Although he did not want to, he agreed to protect her anyway as she was never taught how to deal with problems unlike Gnar, who was hardened with skills that would allow him to flourish in the wilderness on his own.

Being the youngest, Nara was restricted by her older brother to do anything remotely dangerous. So she was stuck under the tree under her brother's eye while she played with her doll. Nothing too dangerous for the little yordle. On the other hand, Gnar was throwing his boomerang up high in the air, running the risk of him getting hurt if he had thrown it improperly. Nara just sighed at his brother and continued to mind her own business.

Nara had hoped that his brother, Dar, was here to play with as he kept a black bug that he stored in his leather pouch. With nothing else to do because of his brother's restrictive authority over her, she acted as a large dinosaur and her doll was the hunter. At first, she imitated her brother when he was this big monster and she started roaring. Gnar gave her a glance and shrugged it off and continued to throw his boomerang up in the air.

The little yordle gathered small pebbles that she could find and Nara started throwing them at her doll. With her poor coordination, she barely hit her doll and she giggled for no reason other than she was copying Gnar.

"Rawr! I'm going to get you!"

Gnar was supposed to stop her sister from throwing the rocks since it was somewhat dangerous but he did not care as he only wanted to throw his boomerang for his enjoyment.

Nara ran and grabbed her doll to start chewing on the only remaining ear. She tried to reach for the doll's arm and she couldn't reach because of her small arms. To her dismay, she dropped her doll and forgot that it ever happened. After, the little yordle raced to her brother's side with her doll at her hand.

"Brother, what are you doing?"

Gnar got startled at the sound of her voice as he thought that she was over by the tree. Looking to her smiling and said that he was throwing his boomerang. Adding to his statement, he told her sister that if he was lucky, he might be able to catch a bug.

Naturally for a two-year old, Nara had believed his brother and gasped in awe.

"Can we get one? Please!"

Gnar got himself in so much trouble because he knew that catching a bug with his boomerang but he planned to not disappoint her sister. He then stood up and motioned for her sister to do the same.

The tiny duo walked up to a nearby bush. First, he needed to find a bug somewhere in the forest of leaves then throw the boomerang up in the air for a "diversion". Then place the bug somewhere in the weapon after it lands in his hand. Gnar still had one problem.

His excuse for rummaging through the bush. His sister would certainly ask what he was doing.

Gnar told his sister on to his weapon for a bit as he tried to find bugs. Just as Gnar had thought, Nara asked him what he was doing and he just said that he was finding something. Nara believed him and continued to hold on to his boomerang.

As he found the bug, he grabbed his boomerang from his sister's hand and threw it up in the air with his other hand covering the bug from Nara's sight. When the weapon came back from the air back to Gnar's hand, he immediately placed the bug on the back side of the boomerang and flipped it to show the little bug that Gnar had put there just a second ago.

Amazed, Nara giggled hysterically and asked her brother if she could keep it. Gnar nodded since it wasn't anything that would deal her any serious harm.

The two siblings returned to their original spots and Nara gathered some branches that fell off the tree and made a barrier to prevent the bug form escaping.

* * *

><p>An hour had passed by and Gnar was fast asleep and Nara was still astonished while playing with the bug. She had given it some berries that she gathered from the bush that his brother had caught her bug from the air. The bug ate the fruit slowly but somehow the bug had eaten the whole berry.<p>

Although Gnar had fallen asleep and their dad was nowhere to be found, Nara decided that she would to go to the forest near their house in the middle of the day. Nara did not tell Gnar that she was going and she had brought the bug along with her.

Nara, being carefree as a child, walked through the path that dwindled along the forest. Nara wanted something that would act as the bug's house. She had already looked through his house and she didn't find anything loose leather so she thought that the forest had some.

Along the path, Nara had encountered as purple creature with its stare vicious enough to tear an animal apart. Nara started walking backwards slowly as the creature moved towards her in an ominous fashion. Its teeth appeared from its mouth and the creature opened them slightly to show that they were meant to rip the flesh out of any living being.

Nara not knowing what to do, she started to panic and ran back towards their house as fast as she could while screaming for help.

Once she got out of the forest, she looked back and at a split second, the creature had pinned her down. The creature had crushed the bug and it laughed as it exposed its razor sharp teeth. Nara screamed for help once more, tears trickled down her face, and desperation to live had kicked in her and she struggled to free herself with her small body.

BROTHER!


	4. Bile

**Chapter 4:**

**Bile**

* * *

><p>Gnar woke up to the shrill of his sister's voice. Looking around to where he thought she was and noticing that she was missing, Gnar frantically jumped up to his feet and ran to where he had heard her as quickly as he could.<p>

Just in time, Gnar saw the thing that was on top of Gnar. With his quick reflexes, he immediately threw his boomerang and it headed towards the creature that pinned his sister down on the ground. In a flash, her sister was lying on the floor, breathing irregularly and the creature at her side twitching as it tried to remove Gnar's weapon off of its side.

"Are you okay?!"

Nara nodded and she threw a rock that she picked up near her at the creature's body and Gnar made sure that it was dead by stabbing the voidling once more. Gnar then took his sister's hand to get her away from the monster that just attacked her. They both ran back to their house and hid there until their dad came back.

After an hour of hiding in resolute silence, Gnar's something or someone had barged in. Gnar had to cover his sister's mouth to keep her from squealing in fear. He then told her to stay put to make sure that they weren't in danger.

Gnar opened his room's door as quietly as he could. He crept out and held his weapon tightly, readying it in case of another one of those voildings show up. Going through the largest room, Gnar was able to see who was disturbing their house. It wasn't anything he has seen before. Gnar had to made sure that it was not a voidling. He went in closer, making sure that the thing that was in front of him did not notice him. As he got a closer look, he realized that its eyes were glowing very dimly in the dark and its structure was not any he has seen before. It waddled around the place while leaving its acidic bile.

Terror had instilled to him as the creature had lingered longer. Instead of going any closer to the creature, he started backing away very slowly as he realized how dangerous this creature could be. While shuffling back, Gnar accidentally bumped a chair. Suddenly, the creature turned its head towards Gnar and spat out its bile. Gnar dodged out of its trajectory. He quickly ran outside where the new creature followed him.

"HUNGER!

The little yordle could only run. All he could've thought was to lure the monster away from their house and somehow try to make it back alive to his sister, who is probably crying and alone in the shadow of their home.

He ran into the forest where he saw Nara got pinned down by a voidling. It wasn't safe but he knew he had to get the creature far from their only home.

Gnar ran as fast as he could but it only seemed that the creature was going to overtake him any minute as if it never rested. Not only was he running from the monster, he was also evading the acid that the creature shot at him. As he ran deeper in to the forest, Gnar started to get lost. He had never ventured this deep into the forest. Despair brought him to stop although he was aware that the creature was still chasing after him. He stood his ground and gathered up all the courage he would need and unsheathed his boomerang in front of him.

Waiting for the thing to get closer to him, he tried to recall everything his father had taught him when he was still a little yordle. Everything from making simple traps to hunting for several weeks without food. He knew he was strong but he thought: What could a small yordle like me do?

Gnar tried to calm himself down and readied his arm for throwing as he was to face the monster that was chasing him through the forest. There is no other way, he thought. The creature was getting nearer and nearer as its grumbles and broken screams sounded louder. He tried not to get angry so he wouldn't destroy anything. He resorted to taking deep breaths to calm himself more.

The creature came into Gnar's view and he immediately threw his boomerang at it. At the same time, Gnar hopped at random directions to confuse his assailant. The little yordle threw his boomerang as many times as he can and making sure that he could retrieve it back. Like Gnar, the creature was relentless at its attack. Spitting acid from its mouth and launching it at the air. Though it fired at the air, it fell down with near accuracy. In one point, Gnar was successfully able to land a hit on the creature but it only retaliated and nearly missed Gnar had he not hopped in the opposite direction of the monster.

The fight continued on for minutes while Gnar getting on the point of exhaustion. The creature, on the other hand, was not showing any signs of wear and kept talking about hunger.

Is he really going to eat me?

* * *

><p>"Dad!"<p>

"Nara, where's your brother?"

Nara shrugged her shoulders and stayed where she hid under her brother's cot. Her dad told her not to go anywhere to open the door for anyone until he came back.

* * *

><p>Gnar kept himself from moving while in the bush. He was lucky enough to get away from him. But the creature still stayed close as if it could smell Gnar. Holding his boomerang at hand, he repositioned himself to react at the moment that the creature had found him. But not yet.<p>

The little yordle waited for a minute, already have seen the creature pass by the bush where he was hiding multiple times. Sweat trickled down his furry face as fear settled in. With no hope left other than facing the creature in either getting killed or killing the monster. The monster passed by him once more. Gnar thought to himself that if he had lived, he would swear to protect his sister's life no matter what the cost. Feeling satisfied at his own unspoken promise to his sister, Gnar recovered some of his hope that he would live through this.

The monster passed by him once more.

Gnar feeling less scared at the point of certain death, he got too comfortable, a mistake he often made. He accidentally brushed the leaves where he was hiding making subtle noises that could be heard for a couple meters. It caused the creature to turn its large head at the shrubbery where Gnar was hidden. Without hesitation, the thing rapidly shot acid to where Gnar was. Gnar hopped out from his hiding place when some of the acid had landed on his small area by his chest. He then threw his boomerang and it bounced off and flung up high in the air after hitting the creature's hard bone-like structure. Gnar hopped on top of the creature making it grunt in irritation. As he rebounded from the creature enabling him to retrieve his weapon, he looked down and saw that the creature had reacted quickly and aimed its mouth at his body. He tried to sway his body to avoid getting hit by the acidic bile but he was too slow. Gnar winced in pain as he fell from the air straight to the ground.

Gnar clutched his hips as the burning sensation of the bile seeped throughout his whole lower abdomen. He looked back and saw the creature waddling towards him. One hand on his side, he raised his other hand to throw the boomerang, hoping that it would hit the thing and make it go away. The weapon flew through the air, going around in circles, before it hit the creature in the eye and then, the boomerang switched its trajectory back to Gnar.

The creature screamed in pain while trying to reach to Gnar. At this point, Gnar was pulling himself away from the creature very slowly. Then he remembered something that should never have happened. Nako had died the same way. He then saw familiar images of his family especially his sister. Am I going to die?

Out of nowhere, he saw someone jump from one the bushes that surrounded the forest. The yordle had bone boomerang, almost like his, wrapped with leather at the hilt. Only one yordle could have such said weapon. Still in pain, he saw his father beat the living daylights of the creature before it retreated somewhere in the forest.

"Are you okay?"

"Dad?"

Gnar passed out right when his dad approached him.

* * *

><p>Gnar woke up with the sun's bright light passing through his room to his face. His first reaction was too cover his eyes with his paws. Upon realizing that he was somewhere different, he sat up only to be stopped by a severe pain where the creature had shot him with its bile. The only difference there was before he passed out was that his whole abdomen area was covered with makeshift bandages made of herbs and long flexible twigs.<p>

Gnar found his boomerang laying on the side of his bed but he couldn't reach with the pain temporarily crippling him. He plainly sighed and already felt bored.

His dad had given him some food for breakfast to sustain him since he wasn't able to eat lunch or dinner. Gnar gave his lunch to his sister the day before. Feeling very hungry, he finished his meal quickly. After eating, he placed his stone-carved plate into the floor where he could barely reach. Gnar's dad had not allowed him to go anywhere until his body healed so he was stuck in his bed for a couple hours with nothing except his sister playing with her doll by his side. This time, their dad had not gone out collecting supplies they would need to survive the incoming winter—such as dried wood, dead leaves, and sticks for fire—because he found a large surplus left by healer's hut.

Gnar tried to recollect what had happened the night before. All he remembered was the creature trying to chase him in the middle of the forest. If I was able to hide from the creature when he hid between a bushes, why wasn't I able to outrun the creature in the first place? Was it toying at me?

Gnar's questions returned no answer as his dad checked on him and replaced his bandage.

"What's on your mind, son?"

"I don't know." Was his simple answer. He couldn't explain why it didn't find him when he was hiding in that bush.


End file.
